


First

by AvandraTheMarySueSlayer



Category: Baldur's Gate
Genre: Divination, Friendship, Gen, Magic, Magic training
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-27
Updated: 2018-03-27
Packaged: 2019-04-13 15:42:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14115552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvandraTheMarySueSlayer/pseuds/AvandraTheMarySueSlayer
Summary: While Cat departs to wage war against the Crusade, Imoen learns the intricate art of divination.





	First

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again! As I promised, I present another one-shot, this time set shortly after Cat departs Baldur's Gate and has a vision of Imoen learning magic. I really hope you like it. I'm slowly taking to writing again, but the next chapter of Strangeness and Charm will take a while. Please enjoy this in the meantime.

* * *

 

“First, clear your mind and concentrate your energy.”

 

That was easy. Well, more or less. She had managed to do it a few times before, so it should not be too challenging now. Imoen closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then another. Then another. She continued until she managed to completely focus on her rhythmic breathing, trying not to remember how she fell asleep the first time she tried.

 

“Good,” Duchess Jannath's voice came from a distance. “Now open your mind, perceive everything around you.”

 

That wasn't quite as easy. She couldn't see a damned thing with her eyes closed, and she was used to perceive things in a physical level, not a mental one. However, she tried. Squeezing her eyes shut, she tried to notice something, _anything,_ but there was only her inner energy; her magic, and it was surrounded in darkness.

 

“Concentrate, Imoen,” Jannath insisted.

 

“I am!” She complained, closing her fists so tight that she felt her nails piercing the soft flesh of her palms.

 

“Alright, enough. You are going to hurt yourself at this rate.” Her tutor said, placing a soothing hand on the novice mage’s shoulder. “We will try again later. Now rest.”

 

Imoen opened her eyes in shock.

 

“No! I want to keep training!” She protested, grabbing the older woman’s arm. “I can’t help Cat in this state, I need to make a quick progress!”

 

“I already told you, child; you won’t progress if all you do is worry about your friend,” the duchess chided the young woman with a stern, yet understanding look. “The Hero of Baldur’s Gate can take care of herself; she proved it when you two were attacked. So if you really want to help her, you need to learn to take care of yourself, and become someone useful for her.”

 

Imoen sighed. As usual, Duchess Jannath was right. She had been granted an unique opportunity to do something she had always wanted. Back in Candlekeep, she had lived surrounded by magic, wanting to learn, and now that she finally had that chance, her endless worries were stilling her progress and souring her experience. She couldn’t allow that.

 

Then, she remembered something her best friend had told her some time before.

 

_“You see, the mind is a labyrinth. It is full of locked doors and dead ends. So to use it properly, you need to unlock the correct doors and take the right passages. It takes time in the beginning, but with enough practice, you can memorize the paths to the center you are looking for. That is what casting magic is really all about; finding your way in a maze.”_

 

“Let me try one last time. If I fail, I’ll go to rest like you said.”

 

Jannath might have been convinced by her determined tone, or perhaps she had seen something in the former thief’s eyes, but she nodded at her.

 

“One more try.”

 

Imoen closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, focusing her mind on them to clear her thoughts and worries. It was working. When darkness surrounded her, she reached out with her fingers, knowing what she was looking for. Soon enough, she felt a door knob, and she turned it. There it was. High stone walls covered in vines, endless paths and crossroads, and more of those wooden doors. She took a deep breath, and started to walk. She felt a pull of energy to her left, and turned that way. It guided her like a distant call, and it became stronger the more she advanced. Then, she saw a light. It glowed white, calming her and pulling her to it.

 

She found the center.

 

One step. Two steps. Three. The light surrounded her, and she _felt,_ she _knew._ Imoen could now perceive the energy in the room around her, find the magic she was searching for. There it was; a wand with a big oval stone on top, in the shape of a flower bud. She did not need to open her eyes to see it. There were runes written all over the handle. “Energy”. “Light”. “Red”. “Projectile”.

 

It was a wand of magic missiles.

 

Suddenly, the runes started to pour information into her. The wand would eject one missile of pure magical energy that would always hit the target, as long as it was visible. Imoen opened her eyes.

 

“I did it! I know what this is!”

 

She then proceeded to explain Duchess Jannath her findings. The woman smiled in approval as the younger mage enthusiastically told her of her little inner journey into her mind.

 

“Very good, Imoen. I knew I wasn’t wrong when I saw that you have talent.”

 

Imoen’s eyes widened, and she beamed in happiness.

 

“Really?”

 

“Yes. We shall continue your training now; I am sure you will soon be capable of great things.”

 

The young woman threw her arms around the surprised mage and pulled her into a tight hug. She even jumped a little in excitement. She did it. She did it! It was her best day ever, at least since she arrived and Baldur’s Gate! Her success filled her with renewed energy and determination. Soon, she would be ready to go help her best friend and the expedition against the crusaders. And that time, she would be useful, so Cat would not have to worry about her well-being anymore.

  


**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked this piece. As always, your feedback makes my day and is incredibly helpful, so please don't be shy to speak your minds! Also, I'll try to be more active over here again, reading and commenting the wonderful stories you people craft. See you soon!


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